Hinged refractory brick hanger



July 5, 1966 J. L. STEIN 3,259,036 I HINGED REFRACTORY BRICK HANGER Filed May 25, 1964 i uulllfl 44 FIGZ 0 mvzm'onz JOSEPH L. STEIN ATTYS.

United States Patent of Pennsylvania Filed May 25, 1964, Ser. No. 369,909 4 Claims. (Cl. 110-99) The present invention relates generally to refractory brick suspension arrangements of the type used in constructing walls and roofs of industrial furnaces. More particularly, the invention relates to a novel hinged refractory brick hanger for suspending or connecting a refractory brick to a furnace roof or wall support structure.

The suspension of individual refractory bricks from a supporting framework on the exterior of furnace roofs and walls is commonly employed for a variety of purposes. For example, the individual bricks of a sprung arch may be provided with suspension means to prevent collapse of the arch as the bricks are consumed in service. Alternately, suspended refractory bricks may be hung directly from a rigid support to form a furnace roof, thus eliminating the need for the forms on which arches are usually constructed. Suspension arrangements are further employed in the patching of furnace walls and arches, particularly during furnace operation. In addition, suspended refractory bricks connected to rigid supports or framework are used in vertical furnace walls to prevent bowing of the walls in service.

Various arrangements have heretofore been developed for the suspension of refractory bricks. One arrangement is characterized by openings or slots performed in the brick sides for engagement with an appropriately shaped hanger. Such a system is expensive and limits the furnace accessibility because of the quantity and size of the hangers involved. Furthermore, a substantial amount of the refractory material must be preserved as a barrier to prevent heat damage to the hanger, and the brick, clue to the limited permissible consumption, is not efficiently utilized. This type of suspension in addition requires wiring, strapping or manual force to hold the bricks on the hangers until adjacent bricks have been placed in position. Not only are additional installation steps required, but a safety hazard is presented since the bricks may be dislodged in spite of precautionary measures.

Another arrangement employs sheet metal hanger tabs extending from the steel plating normally used with basic refractories, the hanger tabs being bendable into position at the time of installation. The bendable tab arrangement is satisfactory in most respects but requires considerable time and effort in prying and bending the tabs into a serviceable position. Should the bricks be supplied with the tabs in an extended position, the cost of manufacturing is significantly increased and the bricks in this condition can be unsafe for fast, efficient handling.

Another suspension arrangement employs a metal tab which is slidable into mounting position from a recessed position within the refractory plating. The main drawback in such a construction is the lack of a positive anchor to the refractory material. A number of variations on the above described suspension arrangements have been proposed but in almost every instance are characterized by certain of the cited disadvantages.

The present arrangement is characterized by a hinged "ice wire hanger secured to the refractory brick by a metal clip imbedded therein, the hinged hanger adapted to fold in flush relationship with a face of the brick for shipping and handling and being readily pivoted into the desired mounting position upon installation of the brick into a furnace structure.

It is accordingly a first object of the present invention to provide a refractory brick hanger arrangement integrally connected to the refractory unit which may be positioned in flush relation with the refractory brick during storage, shipping and handling thereof and subsequently extended to a mounting position upon installation of the refractory brick.

A further object of the invention is to provide a refractory brick hanger arrangement as described wherein the hanger element is pivotally secured to the refractory brick permitting suspensions from various types of supporting structures.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a refractory brick hanger arrangement as described which can be safely and conveniently handled with the hanger either in the retracted or extended position.

Another object of the invention is to provide a refractory hanger arrangement which may be simply and economically manufactured.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description of an embodiment thereof when taken together with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view partly in section showing a hanger assembly in accordance with the present inven tion in position in a refractory die prior to the addition of the refractory material;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional elevational view of the hanger assembly as it appears in the die following molding of the refractory brick thereto;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view shownig a refractory brick embodying the present hanger construction with the hanger in the retracted, manufactured position; and

FIG. 5 is a view as in FIG. 4 with the hanger in the pivoted, mounting position.

The present hanger arrangement is adapted for use with refractory bricks of a wide variety of types and shapes. Although the arrangement may be adapted as discussed hereinafter to preformed or preformed and burned brick, the preferred arrangement is molded in a face of the refractory brick. The arrangement is desirably employed in conjunction with a brick face having an exterior steel plating of the type normally associated with basic brick compositions. The illustrated embodiment accordingly is shown in conjunction with a steel-encased refractory brick.

Referring to the drawings, and particularly FIGS. 4 and 5 thereof, a refractory brick 10 is shown having a steel plate casing 12 and a hanger assembly 14 in accordance with the present invention. The hanger assembly is comprised of a hanger 16 preformed of heavy gauge wire and a sheet metal clip 18.

The clip 18 includes a flat portion 20 extending adjacent the interior face of the steel casing 12 and terminating downwardly in an inwardly directed anchor tab 22. The upper portion of the clip is reversely bent into a U-shape to form a hanger socket 24 parallel with and 3 inwardly juxtaposed to an upper edge 26 of the refractory =brick 10.

The hang-er 16 is characterized by a straight portion 28 adapted to fit in rotatable relation within the hanger socket 24 and extends perpendicularly from the straight portion in a looped portion having parallel leg portions 30 and an arched or rounded end portion 32. As illustrated, the hanger 16 is pivotally secured within the hanger socket 24 for movement from the retracted, manufactured position of FIG. 4 to the extended mounting position of FIG. 5.

For flush relation of the hanger with the brick, a loop shaped groove 36 is provided in the casing 12 to receive the retracted hanger 16. To facilitate the removal of the hanger from the retracted position, a depression 38 is provided partially underlying the lower end of the groove 36. In order to move the hanger 16 from the retracted to the extended position, the rounded end portion 32 of the hanger 16 is grasped by means of the depression 38 and the hanger is readily pivoted into the ex tended mounting position.

A simple method for molding the hanger assembly into the refractory brick and for forming the groove 36 and depression 38 in the casing 12 is illustrated in FIGS. 1-3.

The bottom die 40 of a conventional brick molding press is provided with spaced pyramid-shaped lugs 42 and 44 and an inclined ramp 46. The steel casing 12, in this instance having a channel shape, is placed in the die spaced from the die bottom by the lugs 42 and 44. The hanger and clip assemblies are positioned on the casing 12 above the ramp 46 which, as shown in FIG. 3, is of a width equal to the width of the hanger 16. The clip is preferably welded in position on the casing to prevent movement during the molding process and to increase the strength of the assembly. It should be noted that the clip, when assembled in this maner, is formed such that the hanger socket 24 extends exteriorly of the plating exterior face to permit the assembled disposition shown in FIG. 1, and the casing is cut away at 47 for this purpose.

Upon filling of the channel with refractory material and the molding thereof by conventional equipment, the hanger assembly is, due to the pressure of the refractory material, molded into the position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the ramp 46 depressing the hanger into the steel plating and deforming the plating to a degree exceeding that necessary for a flush disposition of the hanger to provide for possible return of the deformed portion of the plating. The molding operation moves the hanger socket interiorly of the plating, forms the groove 36 in the plating, and forms the depression 38 by means of the lug 42. It will be noted that the lug 44 is somewhat smaller than the lug 42 such that a greater volume of refractory material will be deposited in the right hand end of the casing than in the left'hand end which contains the hanger assembly, thus producing a more even density of the molded brick.

The advantages of the invention as set forth above can be readily appreciated from a consideration of the ease with which the assembly may be secured in place. Just prior to placement of the brick in a furnace, the hanger is rotated into mounting position in a safe and convenient manner. The heavy gauge Wire hanger provides more than adequate strength to support the brick, and since the hanger is pivotally mounted, the problems of fatigue cracks and stress corrosion, which are present in the bending of metal tab members, are eliminated.

. The present hanger assembly may be utilized 'with an unplated brick in which case a suitable sheet of material would be provided between the hanger and the refractory material to prevent the hanger from being fixedly imbedded in the refractory material. One arrangement would be to provide a wider clip which extends beyond the hanger to separate it from the refractory and prevent the undesirable imbedding action. The hanger is, of course, separated from the refractory by the steel plating in the illustrated embodiment and would likewise be separated from the refractory should the assembly be mounted on the exposed face of an internal channel.

As suggested above, the hanger assembly may be used with a preformed, or preformed and burned brick. This may be accomplished by providing a recess in the brick surface to accommodate the clip with its anchor tab. The clip may be held in position by a plate or by glueing and. is ultimately held by an adjacent brick upon installation. 1

The hanger assembly may, in an obviously manner, be modified such that the hanger in the retracted position lies in flush relation with the end or cold face of the brick.

Manifestly, change in details of construction can be effected by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as defined in and limited solely by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A refractory brick having a hinged hanger assembly secured thereto, said assembly comprising a clip anchored in the brick extending along a brick face in flush relation therewith, said clip including a bight-shaped portion forming a hanger socket, said hanger socket being parallel to and closely adjacent an end edge of the brick, a plate on a face of the brick proximate said end edge of the brick, a hanger pivotally mounted in said hanger socket, said hanger being adapted to pivot from a retracted position along said plate to an extended position for mounting the brick in a roof or wall, groove means in said plate permitting said hanger to lie in flush relation with said plate in the retracted hanger position, and a depression in said plate underlying said groove means for facilitating the pivoting of the hanger from the flush retracted position.

2. A refractory brick having a hinged hanger assembly secured thereto, said assembly comprising a metal clip anchored in the brick extending along a face of the brick in flush relation therewith, said clip including a bight-shaped portion forming a hanger socket, said hanger socket being parallel to and closely adjacent an end edge of the brick, a metal plate on said face of the brick overlying said clip and extending proximate said end edge of the brick, a hanger pivotally mounted in said hanger socket, said hanger being adapted to pivot from a retracted position along said plate to an extending position for mounting the brick in a roof or wall, a groove in said plate permitting said hanger to lie in flush relation with said plate in the retracted hanger position, and a depression in said plate underlying said groove for facilitating the pivoting of the hanger from the flush retracted position.

3. A refractory brick having a hinged hanger assembly secured thereto, said assembly comprising a sheet metal clip anchored in the brick including a flat portion extending along a face of the brick in flush relation therewith, said clip including an anchor tab extending from said flat portion substantially perpendicularly into the face of the brick, and a bight-shaped portion forming a hanger socket, said hanger socket being parallel to and closely adjacent an end edge of the brick, a metal plate on a face of the brick proximate said end edge of the brick, a loop-shaped wire hanger pivotally mounted in said hanger socket, said hanger being adapted to pivot from a retracted position along said plate to an extended position for mounting the brick in a roof or wall, a groove in said plate permitting said hanger to lie in flush relation with said plate in the retracted hanger position, and a depression in said plate underlying said groove means for facilitating the pivoting of the hanger from the flush retracted position.

4. A refractory brick having a hinged hanger assembly secured thereto, said assembly comprising a sheet metal clip anchored in the brick including a flat portion extending along a face of the brick in flush relation therewith, said clip including an anchor tab extending from said flat portion substantially perpendicularly into the face of the brick, and a bight-shaped portion forming a hanger socket, said hanger socket being parallel to and closely adjacent and end edge of the brick, a metal plate on said face of the brick overlying and secured to said clip and extending proximate said end edge of the brick, a loop-shaped wire hanger pivotally mounted in said hanger socket, said hanger being adapted to pivot from a retracted position along said plate to an extended position for mounting the brick in a roof or Wall, a groove in said plate permitting said hanger to lie in flush relation with said plate in the retracted hanger position, and a depression in said plate underlying said groove References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS 3/1952 Great Britain. 3/1961 Great Britain.

means for facilitating the pivoting of the hanger from 15 FREDERICK KETTERER, Primary Examiner.

the flush retracted position. 

1. A REFRACTORY BRICK HAVING A HINGED HANGER ASSEMBLY SECURED THERETO, SAID ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A CLIP ANCHORED IN THE BRICK EXTENDING ALONG A BRICK FACE IN FLUSH RELATION THEREWITH, SAID CLIP INCLUDING A BIGHT-SHAPED PORTION FORMING A HANGER SOCKET, SAID HANGER SOCKET BEING PARALLEL TO AND CLOSELY ADJACENT AN END EDGE OF THE BRICK, A PLATE ON A FACE OF THE BRICK PROXIMATE SAID END EDGE OF THE BRICK, A HANGER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED IN SAID HANGER SOCKET, SAID HANGER BEING ADAPTED TO PIVOT FROM A RETRACTED POSITION ALONG SAID PLATE TO AN EXTENDED POSITION FOR MOUNTING THE BRICK IN A ROOF OR WALL, GROOVE MEANS IN SAID PLATE PERMITTING SAID HANGER TO LIE IN FLUSH RELATION WITH SAID PLATE IN THE RETRACTED HANGER POSITION, AND A DEPRESSION IN SAID PLATE UNDERLYING SAID GROOVE MEANS FOR FACILITATING THE PIVOTING OF THE HANGER FROM THE FLUSH RETRACTED POSITION. 